Binance is set to end its Visa debit card services in Europe, which will take effect on December 20. The crypto exchange is shutting down the service but clarified that accounts on its platform are unaffected.

This comes after Binance stopped its Mastercard services when the latter ended its partnership in Latin America and Bahrain. This was in September, and it was suggested that the decision could be due to regulatory matters.

The Termination of Visa Service for Binance Users

Binance confirmed the termination of its services involving Visa’s debit card, which will affect users in the European Economic Area (EEA). CoinTelegraph says Finansinės paslaugos Contis or Contis Financial Services Limited will no longer issue Visa debit cards.

This company acts as Binance’s card issuer. It is a European-wide Banking-as-a-Service platform and currency exchange operator owned by the Solaris Group. It currently covers and is active in 30 countries in Europe.

Visa and Binance Service Offering Before the Discontinuation

Binance Visa debit card allows users to convert their cryptocurrencies in Binance accounts into local currencies. This system makes it easier for customers to use crypto when paying for their purchases online in stores.

Bloomberg reported that the Binance Visa card is honored at more than 60 million merchants worldwide. The card was first issued in September 2020 and was offered to Binance account holders in European nations such as Spain, France, and Germany.

“Although Binance users from around the world have enjoyed using the Binance Visa debit card to make day-to-day payments with crypto assets, only around 1% of our users are impacted by this change,” Binance said to assure other customers that their accounts are unaffected.

In any case, the termination of its Visa service is the latest unfortunate development for Binance. But then again, the company is doing its work to ensure that its users will still get the best services, and in fact, it is said to be onboarding new users in the United Kingdom after losing a third-party service provider.

Photo by: Aleksandrs Karevs/Unsplash